Police are “open-minded” on the role of the weather after a man died when his car crashed into a river in Carburton, Nottinghamshire, on Sunday.

A light aircraft pilot died he crashed into power lines and a garden in thick fog near Hadleigh, Suffolk, on Saturday.

Netweather said an area of cold air will remain wedged over the country over the next few days.

Forecaster Paul Michaelwaite said: “The next few days will see cold air in place across the UK, there will be a hard frost for many overnight with some freezing fog patches developing and potentially lingering through daylight hours too.

“There are also some wintry showers around, running into eastern regions and getting a little way inland - most of these are fairly light and well scattered in nature though.”

Experts are still predicting a white Christmas with odds at their shortest ever two weeks from the big day.

Winter clothing sales at Asda have rocketed in the last week with the supermarket expecting to sell a million onesies by Christmas day. Spokesman Chris Carden said: “With the week ahead set to be the coldest of the year so far, we have stocked up on winter essentials to meet demand and keep the nation warm.”

Ladbrokes are offering 3/1 on snowfall on December 25 in London and Birmingham, and 5/2 fin Edinburgh.

The Met Office forecasts a “colder than average” winter, with a greater snow risk than last year - and a one in four chance of “well-below-average” temperatures.